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Confused about forehand grip???

Hello, I am confused as to whether the forehand grip should be in the palm or held by the fingers. My coach has told me to hold it in my fingers so there is a small gap between the handle and my palm but a lot of the times when I watch pro badminton it looks as if the players hold the racket in their palm.

Second I was starting to wonder what if you curled the thumb in the regular forehand grip. I think Lee Jae Bok calls it the smash grip. I tried his smash grip for clears and drops and everything felt easier to do, and I read on Badmintonbible that some coaches do teach this kind of grip. Would it be ok if I used it or should I stick to the straight thumbed one?

There is nothing wrong with the curled thumb grip for forehands. The straight thumb grip allows for more flexibility as it allows you to use the "basic grip" for backhands as well, as long as they are roughly in line with your body. If you try using the curled thumb basic grip for backhands sometimes it might work but most of the time the racket will slip around as you contact the shuttle meaning you get no power or the shot goes in a completely unintended direction.

I hold the racket mostly in my fingers with the upper part of my palm assisting in keeping the racket stable. This feels comfortable to me.

I think the more important part here is to keep the grip loose and make sure the grip is aligned correctly with the right bevel on your racket. I have seen quite a variation amongst people I consider high quality players and exactly how their grip sits in their hand. Not a large variation but a variation nonetheless.

There is nothing wrong with the curled thumb grip for forehands. The straight thumb grip allows for more flexibility as it allows you to use the "basic grip" for backhands as well, as long as they are roughly in line with your body. If you try using the curled thumb basic grip for backhands sometimes it might work but most of the time the racket will slip around as you contact the shuttle meaning you get no power or the shot goes in a completely unintended direction.

I hold the racket mostly in my fingers with the upper part of my palm assisting in keeping the racket stable. This feels comfortable to me.

I think the more important part here is to keep the grip loose and make sure the grip is aligned correctly with the right bevel on your racket. I have seen quite a variation amongst people I consider high quality players and exactly how their grip sits in their hand. Not a large variation but a variation nonetheless.

Ah ok in that case I'm going to use the curled grip. Everything just feels a lot easier and comfortable when taking the bird in front of the body. Although if the bird goes a little behind your body the curled grip becomes a lot less effective than the regular forehand one. Yea I'll make sure to put my thumb straight up for backhands.

Do you think Taufik Hidayat uses the curled grip for forehand overheads? When I look at his strokes and the shots he plays it doesn't seem like hes using a regular grip

With my standard forehand grip (for normal overheads, forehand net shots, drives etc) there's a slight gap between handle and palm and my thumb is almost straight. With smashes, I find it is the index finger which provides extra leverage and stability.

However, my pan-handle grip (for forehand shots out in front of me, i.e. forehand net kills) has the handle against my palm and my thumb is more curved.

With my standard forehand grip (for normal overheads, forehand net shots, drives etc) there's a slight gap between handle and palm and my thumb is almost straight. With smashes, I find it is the index finger which provides extra leverage and stability.

However, my pan-handle grip (for forehand shots out in front of me, i.e. forehand net kills) has the handle against my palm and my thumb is more curved.

No idea whether that's the right way to do it, but works for me.

hmmm I might try holding the forehand grip in my fingers and see how it feels, I just didn't think finger power would be as strong as the crushing power of your palm.

Hello, I am confused as to whether the forehand grip should be in the palm or held by the fingers. My coach has told me to hold it in my fingers so there is a small gap between the handle and my palm but a lot of the times when I watch pro badminton it looks as if the players hold the racket in their palm.

Second I was starting to wonder what if you curled the thumb in the regular forehand grip. I think Lee Jae Bok calls it the smash grip. I tried his smash grip for clears and drops and everything felt easier to do, and I read on Badmintonbible that some coaches do teach this kind of grip. Would it be ok if I used it or should I stick to the straight thumbed one?

thx!

First question, You coach is correct for that matter .For the second questions, it depends what is more comfortable for you , for me forehand is slightly curled and for backhand as well (although it should be straight) but it works fine for me and feel right , as long as you have to correct grip for the shots and finger actions then you got nothing to worry about

First question, You coach is correct for that matter .For the second questions, it depends what is more comfortable for you , for me forehand is slightly curled and for backhand as well (although it should be straight) but it works fine for me and feel right , as long as you have to correct grip for the shots and finger actions then you got nothing to worry about

hmmm I might try holding the forehand grip in my fingers and see how it feels, I just didn't think finger power would be as strong as the crushing power of your palm.

...finger power is what forces the racquet handle into your palm... the foreward momentum of a swing will get you there, but add in the fingers (think trigger fingers) and the racquet speed will increase by another 15-20%, allowing the handle to snap into the palm even faster.

I would suggest that it is the wrist pronation which ultimately delivers racket speed. However, the position of the index finger and the tightening of grip at impact 'strengthens' the connection between hand and handle. Therefore, the index finger help you to transfer more momentum to the shuttle, rather than making the racket go faster.

At impact, the racket gets pushed against your index finger and away from your palm. Therefore, I would also suggest that it is your small finger which works in complement to your index finger, rather than the thumb.

The thumb is more important for backhands, for the same reason as the index finger is for forehands.